Father’s stolen military medals returned to grateful son

Medals

KITCHENER — Ted Claxton was convinced he’d never see his father’s military medals again.

The seven medals Norman Claxton earned for his service in the Second World War and the Korean War were among the items stolen from Ted Claxton’s Kitchener law office during an August break-in, along with a map case Norman carried in Korea.

The stolen medals were profiled in a story on the front page of Tuesday’s Waterloo Region Record.

By Tuesday night, Norman Claxton’s medals and map case were back in the hands of a very grateful son.

“I’m overwhelmed,” Ted Claxton said. “I’ve got them back, and I’m very, very pleased with the efficiency of the police department. . . . They acted immediately and effectively.”

An anonymous tipster saw the story, and believed they knew where the medals were. That person contacted Ted Claxton with the information, and he relayed it in turn to Waterloo Regional Police at about 5 p.m.

By 7:30 p.m., officers had returned the items. Everything was there, and, save for some slight damage to one medal, was in good condition. Claxton said the damage to the Second World War Voluntary Service Medal is easily repairable.

“It’s totally a good news story,” said Staff Sgt. Mike Mercer.

“The media reached out to the public, the public reached out to the police,” he said. “The investigators were able to recover something historic, and something that holds a lot of personal value and memories.”

Police recovered the items at a residence in Waterloo.

There’s no word whether charges will be laid in connection to the discovery of the medals, but the investigation is continuing.